JANUARY

HEAVY snow (above) brought chaos to Mid Devon. Dozens of schools were closed, roads blocked and pavements left treacherous.

FEBRUARY

VILLAGERS in Clyst Hydon celebrated after a buyer was found to take over their local pub following a month-long campaign to keep it open.

Hundreds of people backed calls to keep The Five Bells Inn open amid fears it could be sold for re-development as a residential property.

MARCH

A TALENTED young footballer from Tiverton died in a crash on the M5.

Daniel Gunn, 24, was killed and two friends were injured when their car left the southbound carriageway of the motorway near Wellington.

Tom Pilling, 25, from Tiverton, admitted causing death by careless driving and driving without insurance.

He was sentenced at Taunton Crown Court to six months in jail and was banned from driving for two years.

APRIL

A ONCE-POPULAR bowls club was forced to fold due to dwindling membership and rising running costs.

Padbrook Park Indoor Bowls Club played its last game at Cullompton Hotel and Country Club in April. It had been founded in 1992.

MAY

ROYAL Marine James Bridgman from Tiverton was reunited with his family after a seven-month tour of Afghanistan with 40 Commando.

The section commander gave wife Sally and daughters Sophia, five, and Scarlett, three, a huge hug when he returned to Norton Manor Camp, near Taunton, as part of the last group of Royal Marines to return home from Helmand Province.

JUNE

A MOTHER was shocked to find the woman who supported her through her pregnancy at work also welcomed her into the world as a midwife 25 years ago.

Teacher Katy Plumley, 25, from Tiverton, gave birth to baby Rosie in April at Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital – but recognised her mum’s midwife when flicking through a family album.

JULY

WORK to fix a collapsed wall on the Grand Western Canal near Tiverton got under way.

A turf-cutting marked the start of repair work after the northern bank near the Swing Bridge at Halberton collapsed in November 2012 following torrential rain.

YEAR 11 gather outside Cullompton Community College for their last school photo.

AUGUST

MID Devon schools celebrated record-breaking GCSE results.

In the face of tougher grade boundaries, Uffculme School, Cullompton Community College and Queen’s Community College in Crediton achieved their highest ever grades.

SEPTEMBER

THOUSANDS of people lined the streets to see some of the world’s top cyclists as the Tour of Britain passed through Mid Devon. 

OCTOBER

MEMBERS of Mid Devon Indoor Bowls Club in Tiverton celebrated the opening of their new playing surface.

MP Neil Parish cut the ribbon at the club in Amory Park and had the first bowl on what is now one of the best indoor greens in the country.

NOVEMBER

THE manager of Sunningmead Community Centre in Tiverton was left ‘disappointed and gobsmacked’ after a break-in caused damage costing hundreds of pounds.

DECEMBER

MID Devon District Council approved plans for a £200,000 makeover of Tiverton’s skate park, after a two-year campaign to improve it.